FURRY FRIENDS: Rickmansworth’s Thames Water spots wildlife

Footage of foxes, badgers and other wildlife in their natural habitat has been picked up by video cameras installed at a sewage treatment area in Rickmansworth.

The camera traps, which are triggered to record by creatures passing nearby and use night-vision technology, have been in place at Maple Lodge sewage treatment works in Rickmansworth along with other Thames Water sites.

Since they were installed in April, they have captured images and videos of badgers digging setts, foxes patrolling the undergrowth and roe deer grooming themselves.

Ian Crump, a biodiversity field officer for Thames Water, said: “We captured footage of small and large mammals, birds both rare and quite common and the general comings and goings of people and operations.

“It’s taken a bit of time to figure out the best way to do things, you have to pick your spot quite carefully.

“The best footage I’ve come up with is when I carry out my field surveys – looking for signs of animal activity first and setting them up along those lines.

“For me, the best footage at Maple Lodge has to be of the foxes. They love the sewage treatment works because they have got lots of tasty rats to eat.”

The footage from the cameras will be used to monitor the wide variety of wildlife who make Thames Water sites their homes and help make decisions on future operations, developments and enhancements at the sites.

The company has committed to increasing biodiversity by five per cent at its sites as part of the upcoming business plan for 2020 to 2025.